Forage, prepared from either alfalfa and other grasses or from whole corn plants, is a desirable nutrient- and protein-rich feed for farm animals. Forage gathered from grass or corn fields undergoes anaerobic fermentation in silos. A high moisture content in the ensiled forage is desirable as it promotes efficient fermentation.
Preparation of a high-moisture corn cob mix from ear corn using existing technologies involves picking or shelling the corn, transporting the ear or shelled corn to a stationary hammer or roller mill adjacent to a silo, processing the ear or shelled corn through the mill, and ensiling the processed corn by blowing the mixture into the silo. In this approach, separate equipment is required for the collecting, processing and ensiling steps.
At present, the corn is collected from the field either using an ear corn picker or using a combine. When an ear corn picker is used, ears separated from the stalks and husks (fodder) are transported in wagons by the farmer to the stationary mill where the corn is shelled and the cobs are broken as the mixture is ensiled. The ear corn, which is high in moisture at harvest, is not easily transferred from the wagon to the ensiling mill. Rather, the process requires skilled machinery operators both in the field and at the processing mill, where the rate at which ear corn is fed into the mill must be carefully controlled to prevent clogging.
In contrast to the ear corn picker, a combine can represent a significant labor savings in collecting corn plant material from the field. However, combines are designed to yield primarily kernels separated from crushed cobs. While about 20 to 30%, or even 40%, of the cobs taken up and crushed can be forced into the mix, this still represents a 60-80% waste of valuable and nutritious feed material from the mix.
Moreover, combines are designed to operate on dry plant material having a moisture content of about 15 to 25%, while the preferred moisture content of a corn-cob forage mix for ensiling is above 25% and may be in the range of 30 to 40% or even higher. In general, the separated free-flowing, low-moisture grain prepared by a combine is augered to an on-board grain tank then transferred to trucks or wagons designed to handle free flowing shelled corn. This free flowing mixture is generally too dry for good ensiling. Therefore, the combine improved corn handling but at moisture level less than desirable for ensiled feed.
Accordingly, a desirable apparatus would harvest corn material having a moisture content adequate for producing silage, and would convert the harvested corn material into a high-quality, high-moisture forage mix more efficiently and at lower equipment and labor cost than can now be accomplished.